In a production environment, a transfer line may be employed to move a part through a series of machining operating stations. Alternatively, single machining stations may be used where several machining operations are performed on a part. In either situation, clamps hold the part or transfer pallets in a fixed position during machining. The clamp force may be generated from various sources such as springs or hydraulics. Maintaining the proper clamp force is critical to ensure consistent quality and safety of the machining operations.
The clamp force may be checked through manual intervention. For example, a machine operator may use a pry bar to subjectively test the force resistance of each clamp arm. No objective force readings may be obtained. In addition, this method is both time and labor intensive, as well as disruptive to production. Alternatively, an operator may install a load cell on each individual clamp arm and manually record the displayed reading. This process is extremely time consuming and impractical for a high volume manufacturing environment.